Bitterness
by KAW9anime
Summary: Roy is lost after he walked out on the JL so he goes to confront Robin about knowing of the JL's secret HQ in space. Hints at development of Red Arrow. One-shot, no pairings


Disclaimer: I do not own young justice.

Bitterness

Time period: one day after Fireworks/Independence Day part 2

July 5 21:36

It came as no surprise to Robin that only a day after Speedy walked out of the Hall of Justice and quit as Green Arrow's partner should he show up in Gotham City. Frankly, he was surprised he had not seen Speedy last night, but, now that he thought about it, it made perfect sense. The guy was probably so flustered he couldn't think straight after he walked out, not to mention Batman had grounded Robin, literally when he came back with those bruises, for the night so he wasn't anywhere Speedy would ever have found him. Currently, Speedy was perched atop the tallest building in the neighborhood scanning for, most likely, him and Batman. The Dynamic Duo on the other hand were located on a building only half the height of Speedy's but had much more shadowing, making them both invisible.

Robin waited as patiently as he could while he watched his mentor shoot a death glare at the unknowing victim. Finally letting out an exasperated sigh, his impatience won him over. Robin tentatively called out "Batman?"

Robin knew Batman was angry. Hell he had been angry before Speedy arrived with the whole Cadmus fiasco, but now? Batman most definitely hated other heroes in his city and had a very good reason for it... and some not so great reasons. What was important right now was avoiding any major violent reaction from either of them. Both were undeniably pissed right now, and them going head to head was bound to be all bad.

"He wants to talk to you." Batman stated clearly, his voice showing no signs of the anger he was really feeling at the sight of Speedy in Gotham.

Robin looked down, not wanting to look at Batman. He would read Robin like an open book and that wasn't something Robin felt like facing right now. Batman's statement, however, came at no shock to Robin. He knew it, just like how he knew Speedy hadn't talked to any of the others, Kid Flash or Aqualad. Kid Flash just wouldn't understand Speedy's reasons, at least not in the way he intended them. Kid Flash was just too light hearted. What they do didn't mean the same to him as it did to Speedy. Not to imply Kid Flash didn't care, he just lacked the emotional depth Speedy was looking for. Aqualad on the other hand would have understood much better and was a little closer in age to Speedy. The only problem with that was Aqualad was near impossible to reach living under water and all, and Aqualad had a much different relationship with his mentor than the rest of them. Aquaman was a king after all.

So why was Speedy in Gotham currently searching out the youngest of the four of them, the one who was probably more immature than Kid Flash and nowhere near as relatable age wise like Aqualad? The answer was actually pretty simple. Robin was the first, the protégé of the Batman. If anyone could understand Speedy's dilemma it was him.

"I know." Robin replied a few moments later.

Batman then turned around and began walking away leaving a confused Robin standing there staring after him. He stood at the edge of the building and shot his grappling hook, but, before he left, he gave one last piece of advice.

"Be serious. Joke around and he'll never leave." He said growling the last part out and jumped off the building to scout the rest of the city.

Robin sighed heavily as he turned back toward the perch Speedy was now sitting on seemingly having given up on finding them. Muttering to himself, Robin took off to meet him saying "But being serious is boring."

-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-

Speedy had been searching for the Dynamic Dou for about an hour now and had no luck in finding either of the pair. However, he knew both must know he's here by now, so he sat down on the top of the entrance to the stair case with his feet dangling off the side. Almost five minutes after he had sat down a person came in to stand next him.

"About time you got here. What took you so long?" he asked the boy.

"Wasn't sure what to say and I had to get the okay from Batman. You are in his city." Robin answered with a chuckle and continued much slower. "So, what did you want to talk about so bad?"

"Did you know?"

Robin sat down confused, "Know what?"

"About the JL's secret HQ in space." Speedy said louder, his frustration leaking into his voice. "You didn't seem nearly as surprised as I thought you would be or cool headed enough for me to know if you knew about it."

Not ashamed in the least Robin answered "Kind of. Batman never told me anything but I knew he would never have the Justice League's Head Quarters somewhere so many people have access to, he too paranoid for that. And, after going through all the different files in the Bat cave over the years, I realized the JL had a satellite to alert the League to any potential off-Earth threats. I never put them together, but, now that I think about it, it's perfect for him."

"So what? You're okay with it? Batman not telling you!" the archer barked out.

Glaring at the older boy, Robin retorted "It's not our team. We're not part of the Justice League. They shouldn't be conversing with anyone outside of it about sensitive intel. The truth is Green Arrow should have never told you about their HQ. You aren't part of the JL, and even then you opened your big mouth about their secrets."

Speedy let out a sour laugh. "So that's it then. That's why you're not angry. You're happy being some sidekick!"

"I'm _not_ a sidekick, and you don't know anything!" Robin shouted at Speedy as he stood up and jumped down from their perch to stand close to the edge of the building.

"What then? How do I have the wrong picture because, from where I am, that's all you are." Speedy snapped as he followed Robin to the edge of the building.

"You don't get it." Robin began angrily. "You had it easy compared to when I started. I am the youngest to have ever taken the side of any of them. Most of the Justice League demanded Batman take me out of commission when they found out. If it were up to them, I would just be some naïve little kid with nothing to worry about but what my next test score was. They were narrow-minded and couldn't see past the fact that I was 9. There was no way they were going to let us join, and you were diluted if you ever really thought that. We're too young for them with no real 'life experience'. Green Arrow and Batman might not think that way, but the rest of the League sure do. For me, this wasn't a step towards admittance but a step towards acceptance. Proving to the Justice League that we are here and we can help."

Speedy stayed silent for a few minutes processing what Robin said, but a questioned popped up in his head. "If Batman doesn't think like the rest of the League, why doesn't he let us in or push for us like Green Arrow at least attempted?"

Robin laughed at that. The answer seemed obvious to him, but he did live with Batman. He must understand him better than most. With a smile Robin answered, "You may not realize it, but I am only 13. There's a lot more to life than just this, right now. But for you? I think its Batman's way of telling you to get a life. Find yourself out there. It's a big world; there's more in it than merely the Justice League."

Robin stood up on the ledge, a moment later he turned to Speedy and said "Well you should get going. We wouldn't want Batman spotting you again in the next 15 minutes." With that, he leapt of the side of the building, shot out his grappling hook, and took off to find Batman. The last thing Speedy heard of Robin that night was an eerie laugh echoing off of the buildings.


End file.
